TGC: Matchstick Coffee Roasters (Vancouver)

The Global Cup: Matchstick Coffee Roasters

We stumbled upon this place while looking for a new cafe to try out near our neighbourhood. The first time we went, we almost walked right past it so be careful or you might miss it. It’s so worth the visit, though.

1. Coffee

The coffee here is great. I’m a big pourover fan, so when I see that being offered, I’m a happy customer. I purchased a bag of their coffee beans to use with my Aeropress at home and I wasn’t madly in love with them — but that may have been due to the poor quality of my grinder. They did offer to grind the beans for me and in hindsight, I should have let them! Their cappuccinos and lattes are right up there – you can tell they don’t rush to get you your coffee even if there’s a line and it’s busy. To me, that’s a real sign of quality.

Pourover and a cappuccino. Both were amazing.

2. Food

Here is where it starts to get good, really good. Their baked goods selection is relatively small, but everything that we’ve tried has been amazing. Expect to have trouble deciding what to eat. They have spelt thumbprint cookies with housemade jam, Earl Grey Lemon Sourdough Crumble muffins (!!!), and perfectly flaky looking plain, chocolate and almond croissants. They also make some of the best sourdough bread that Mike and I have tasted in Vancouver. We go there sometimes for the sole purpose of picking up a loaf of bread. They also serve sandwiches and salads that look incredibly fresh and delicious. Basically, if it were closer to us, I’d probably be going every day.

This is my favourite style of bread, and Matchstick does it better than any other cafe/bakery we’ve been to in Vancouver so far. (source)

3. Atmosphere

This is where it gets even better. The space is huge. There are several communal tables and a few smaller ones that you can work at. Their kitchen is also integrated into the space so you can look through the glass window and watch people work while you’re there. Everything is minimal, but tasteful. The wifi is pretty reliable too, which means you can easily spend an entire day there drinking great coffee, eating delicious food, and getting a lot of work done. This is one of my favourite places to work at.

Gorgeous interior and ample working space. There’s another communal table that’s not pictured and several smaller ones as well. (source)I love how open and gorgeous the work space is for bakers!